Power Grid Blog
My Experience as a Woman with a Disability in a STEM Career
December 7, 2011 | Power Grid Blog Team
For nearly 10 years, we at AAPD have recognized the value of encouraging young people with disabilities pursue a career in STEM field by providing internship placements for those in IT academic track in college. Sheiba Tafazzoli was an AAPD internship program alum (2009) and it led to her current job at Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Declaring my major was one of the hardest tasks I had to do in college. I wanted to major in it all. When I told my parents I wanted to quadruple-major in Auto Mechanics, Criminology, Archaeology, and Theatre Arts, they told me I was crazy. That I needed to pick one. But why settle for one, when you can have it all? I wanted to be a jack of all trades as opposed to an expert in one tightly-knit field. I aced all my subjects in high school, but I had a particular knack for math and science.
Naturally, Engineering came to mind. And it definitely wasn’t one of the easiest majors in college; so immediately, I was drawn to it. I always like a challenge, and challenges love me.
When my year of graduation finally surfaced, I knew I needed experience to enrich my resume. I was actively seeking internships before my senior year, but I wasn’t having the best of luck and knew that I needed to start somewhere. That’s when I came across the American Association for People with Disabilities’ (AAPD) programs in one of my e-mails from the Career Center. I was ultimately chosen for their Federal IT program where I was placed with an IT Office under the Department of Transportation (DOT) in Washington, D.C. This is where it all started…my career.
Two weeks into my internship, my supervisor was already asking me to stay as an employee. I thought she was crazy, but two months later they delivered on their offer. I was offered a position in their office where I started two months later. I knew it wasn’t exactly in my field of discipline that I studied in college, but I thought it’d be a good starting point for my resume and that it would give me time to scout other job opportunities.
Little did I know that the opposite was about to happen. Instead of my identifying more attractive Engineering positions, agencies recruited me. Through the Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) contacted me about hiring me into their elite Nuclear Safety Professional Development (NSPDP) program. I also attended a Federal Recruiting event by invitation only for individuals with disabilities, where I was ultimately offered two positions.
It was all happening fast, and I wasn’t expecting any of these job offers. So here I am, two years later still in DC now working for the NRC under their NSPDP program. Securing accommodations at this new agency has been no easy feat, but since my hire I’ve been working with them on improvement.
My earned degree in Computer Engineering is what really opened doors for me. I took the path less traveled, and it has ultimately led me to more paths of opportunity than ever imagined. I’m grateful that I had the discipline and focus to stick with it for as long as I did, because it’s one of the toughest majors to study and the endeavor has its perks. Now, it’s my hope to pave the way for others so that accommodations in the workplace increase awareness and recruitment for employees of all disabilities.
Comments
Submitted by C Miller at 08:33 AM on January 21, 2013